ABOVE: Stephen in the gym.

VIGILANCE
by Stephen Koch

Vigilance is alert watchfulness. And as a climber it is paramount to be vigilant, not only for my own safety, but for the safety of my partner. Through the act of belaying, or protecting a partner with the rope, is when I am most watchful. My partner calls out, “watch me” and my total focus returns (if not already there) to safeguarding their every move by constantly giving and sometimes taking in (when they climb down) rope. My mind wanders often while belaying. Belaying can be the most exciting thing ever and a moment or two later, the most tedious activity known to man, sometimes the activity of belaying can go on for hours on a challenging lead. Belaying is usually more exciting when I can observe my partner. This direct observation makes it easier for me to be encouraging and I regularly say with all my heart and hope and belief, “I’ve got you” or “I’m with you” or “You’ve got this!” or “You’re doing great!”

Belaying is a love hate thing for me. On the one hand I love being in a position to encourage and coax my partner up. On the other I have intense feelings of impatience, and become critical and think, no KNOW, how much faster things would go if I were on the sharp end, only to climb up and realize first hand the challenge my partner faced on lead. This mind dance could be credited with my success as a mountaineer, but can also be credited with my continued suffering. Would I benefit from less vigilance in the mountains? The bottom line with belaying is that you better be vigilant because your partner’s life literally depends on it. If they fall and you have too much rope out due to lack of vigilance, they may hit a ledge or the ground. There are numerous examples of this occurring throughout the climbing world and I would venture to say this is one of the leading causes of injuries in climbing.

Before a climb I vigilantly select the gear, taking the bare minimum to increase the chances of success. This might be contrary to some people’s thinking…why not take more, that way you will have it if you need it. Well the more you take, “just in case,” the more you carry. The more you carry the heavier you are. The heavier you are the slower you go. The slower you go the shorter distance you cover in a given amount of time. Classic example…if you take bivouac gear, you will use it. If you don’t take it, you won’t use it and probably won’t need it. You will climb faster as a result of being lighter and also being more committed. Are you willing to go there? The risks may be greater, but so are the rewards. It is also important to check the weather. An example of being vigilant and getting stung by going light on a long and difficult route at altitude, with Jimmy Chin, Kami Sherpa, Lapka Dorge Sherpa, I was climbing the North Face of Everest. We took only one two man tent, two sleeping pads, two stoves to melt snow and cook food, two days of food, a 100′ 7mm rope, a few nuts and titanium pitons, a few slings and carabiners and that was pretty much it…oh yea, and my snowboard. Had we brought more food we would have been in a better position to continue to 8,000 meters, with the summit attainable from there, two thousand feet above our current position on the massive face. BUT, we also would have been slower as a result of carrying more food. And we may all be dead if we had continued up. After retreating from about half way up the face we saw a fracture in the snow where an avalanche had ripped out, right above our high point.

Vigilance goes hand in hand with intensity for me and everything I love. While climbing I do EVERYTHING that I am capable of to move faster and be more efficient…

Go to Mountain Athlete for the rest of this essay (here), bottom of the page. And while you are at that page on Mountain Athlete, check out the other essays by the sponsored athletes at MA.

…giving a courtesy hold on rappel, making a V-Thread while belaying my partner, eating, drinking, pissing, shedding layers, donning layers, organizing gear, stacking the ropes, giving a consistent and snug belay, giving encouragement to the second as well as the leader, shutting the fuck up when that “helpful” voice that loves to justify the criticisms with “it’s for your own good”, and other drivel; keeping my criticisms to myself, trying not to beat myself up for having the criticisms dance around my head, keeping the psych high and the true belief in our ultimate success paramount, until it becomes so, all play into the separatelessness of life, thought and climbing.

Am I soloing? Do I need to be completely secure? Can I survive a fall here? How important is speed here? What time is it? Do we have a headlamp? Extra batteries?  What phase is the moon today? Is it clear enough for us to be granted moonlight? What is the temp? Is ice likely to fall naturally from above?  Am I climbing below others who may not be as vigilant about knocking down ice? Even if they are, the ice still falls, always falls, no matter the completeness of the vigilance. That is one sketchy aspect of being in the natural, uncontrollable world of frozen water. Will I find safety from the threatening projectiles beyond shrugging my shoulders, trying to fit my entire body under my helmet?

Vigilant listening: Survival in the mountains often depends on listening. With avalanches, my earliest signs are usually auditory. Jet airplanes sound like avalanches, so I pay attention every time I hear something. And fortunately it is usually just a plane. I listen to the sound of the ice axe as it makes contact with the ice to determine my next move: whether to remove it and swing again for a more secure stick, or commit to ascend.  It’s a decision in the moment to “go” or “no go”, and in that moment I trust the sound more than the feel of the axe. So while I am vigilant about conditions around me that I can see and touch, I also pay utmost attention to what I hear.

Even when vigilant to the last detail, shit still hits the fan.  And once that happens, you take in all the data around you to get yourself through, and may it be with vigilance!

Post Lake Michigan Winter Swim

This morning I went for a short run, which I rarely do, with my host in Chicago, Gene Marcowka, seen below in the running photos. What a beautiful morning we had getting out early for the short run and swim. It was quite tricky running with verglas (thin layer of ice) in places. It was reminiscent of being in the mountains after a fall storm, potentially treacherous.

Gene running along the shore of Lake Michigan.

A couple friends, musicians who I know through the Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, came over this morning for a workout after my run with Gene (and a warm shower to heat up my toes and fingers!). We did a bunch of Burpees, tele-lunges, wall sits, hamstring exercise, dips, core workout and my favorite, simply jumping up as high as possible from a crouch and repeating 10 x! These and other exercises are available on Mountain Athlete’s website.

Off to Northwestern to give a lecture to music students about keeping your cool under extreme circumstances. For me it was during and after a 2,000 foot fall in an avalanche. For them it will be during auditions!

I am taking a deep, relaxing breath right now, which reminds me to be more conscious of the ever present moment, all that is. And I, and the world, benefit.

Stephen Koch

The roof I am climbing on in the video below is 3/4″ plywood with metal T-nuts and eye bolts. Very simple and inexpensive to build. The axes are Petzl Nomics.

Start on a vertical wall and work your way up to the 45 degree wall (door hinges screwed to the wall make great ice axe pick placements!) and then onto the roof. Start slow and be safe. At Mountain Athlete, we put mattresses and other padding down to protect us in case of a fall.

I also feel strongly that rock climbing and mountaineering would be a great addition to any MMA fighter looking to become stronger than the competition. Drop me a note with questions or if interested in group or private instruction.

Enjoy!

Stephen Koch

My Family

I don’t look at my recent solo climb of the Black Ice Couloir in Grand Teton National Park as “taking risk.” I look at it as going home or touching the wildness in me that I tend to lose when I am out of the mountains for long. It was also simply returning to one of the most magical places I know on the planet, the west side of the Grand Teton, alone. I have been there many times alone, but not for a long, long time…so long in fact that I don’t remember the last time I was there, but I would guess 12 years.

On the Valhalla Traverse, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming Photo: Stephen Koch

This climb was pivotal for me for another reason. I had not soloed a significant climb (technically challenging or big alpine route with exposure and objective dangers…Black Ice being the latter for me) since becoming a father to my young son, Axl, who is nearly 3 and a half years old. I wanted to experience the thrill of pushing against my comfort zone, having forgotten exactly where it is. I quickly learned where it was in regards to changing diapers! I am not speaking of the typical “thrill seeker” rush, but the thrill of moving alone in an alpine world that was once so familiar to me. The thrill of moving fast over technical terrain. The thrill of sharing what I was experiencing, and IN REAL TIME, with people through my Blog, Facebook and Twitter updates (here), the thrill of recording “How To” climbing tips (coming soon) while in the crux of the route, the thrill of choosing the fastest and safest line and doing it without a rope, the thrill of knowing an error would likely be fatal, the thrill of putting myself in a situation where I am master and I answer to the laws of nature for my actions. I felt completely empowered during this climb, as with all climbs, in a way that I am unable to duplicate outside of the mountains.

Ice climbing in the Tetons

To reduce some of my anxiety (at the expense of my body by carrying the extra weight) I brought a rope, small rock rack and harness, in addition to my ice axes, crampons and helmet. If I felt like I needed to belay (protect) a section I had the gear to do so. If I wanted to rappel (out of the climb) because of discomfort, I could have done it (not easily though!). If I needed to do a self rescue or clip into an anchor if I was hit by a stone, I had the gear to do it. Does this guarantee success? Absolutely not. Does this guarantee safety? Absolutely not. Does this guarantee anything at all? No. What it did do was make taking the risk on this climb more reasonable. Did I believe there was much chance I would fall? Absolutely not. I solo in a way that is very controlled. Is there a chance that I COULD fall? Yes. It wouldn’t be climbing without this risk or unknown. This risk and unknown is precisely why climbing is so magical! No guaranteed outcomes here! If you want that, check your local listings…

Stoked to discover the Black Ice Couloir is Back (in)! Photo: Stephen Koch

Self exploration and expression through danger has been part of my DNA since I was a small boy. Through my move to Jackson Hole 22 years ago (to take a year off before college), I found a wonderful new outlet for my energy and desire. That outlet was snowboarding. Not long after I began snowboarding, my eyes were drawn to high lines on mountains I knew I had the talent to snowboard but not the ability to climb. That is when I found a mentor, someone willing to hold my hand as I stumbled forward into the exciting unknown of the alpine world. That person was Tom Turiano, local guidebook author of Teton Skiing and Select Peaks Of Greater Yellowstone. Tom not only showed me the ropes, he did much more than that by demonstrating great patience as I continued to enthusiastically and at times naively clamor for more. I rode on his coattails for my first season in the high Tetons. The year was 1989 and the Middle, Grand and South Tetons felt the wonderfully ephemeral touch of a snowboard for the first time. After a season in Chamonix I returned to the Tetons with a new set of eyes and set about challenging myself on eventual Teton Classics with a vengeance.

Working a stem and the camera phone on the crux of the Black Ice Couloir, Grand Teton National Park, WY Photo Copyright - Stephen Koch

In regard to the risks involved with my passions, alpine, rock, ice and mixed climbing as well as snowboard mountaineering, as a father and husband, I say this: to follow my heart, which is to participate in these activities, and in this instance, to solo the Black Ice Couloir, brings me closer to my self and to my family. By living my truth I honor my family. When I return from the mountains I am calmer, more at peace, more tolerant of both myself and others, more my true self, temporarily shed of insecurities built while in the valley. My family experiences a happier and more pleasant husband and father. If I die in the mountains, my wife and son will have known the real me, not some pretend father. I will not pretend it is better to stay out of the mountains and away from danger because I am a father and husband. This is a judgment left up to the individual.

Fun in the sun after the ascent. Photo copyright- Stephen Koch

Staying out of the mountains would be suicide for my soul. The numerous times I have been forced to stay out through injury have been torturous. As I envision going down that path, I see my family experiencing a man devoid of his essence. Bitterness and resentment towards them would grow like a weed. I am the climber and risk taker my wife chose to be with. The risks I take, to me, are reasonable. I train my body through working out at Mountain Athlete and by doing and teaching the many wonderful activities in and around Jackson Hole that make my home special…mountain biking, rock climbing, backcountry snowboarding, hiking, rafting, lake and river swimming, hot spring soaking and on and on. I train my mind through both meditation and physical suffering.

Safe and Happy at the Upper Saddle of the Grand Teton after the climb! Photo Copyright - Stephen Koch

This time it was the Black Ice Couloir, next time where will it be? I am open and excited to discover and choose what’s next! Oh yea, one other thing, I am so well trained that I did the dishes before departing on this adventure!

Smoke that gave me black lung from running down during my 9 hour 45 minute solo of the Black Ice Couloir. 15 minutes faster than when I was a "kid!" Photo Copyright - Stephen Koch

If you are interested in strength training for your sport, whatever sport, check out Rob’s Blog at www.mtnathlete.com. He takes your questions about your sports and answers them. If he can’t answer them, he finds the answer from someone in his vast network.

Mountain Athlete (www.mtnathlete.com) recently opened up shop in Boulder, CO and is being headed up by Connie Sciolino, a smart, strong and outstanding coach with a strong medical background, who is married to a derelict and friend of mine…Tom (who has climbed the North Face of the Eiger!). So if you are in the Denver or Boulder area and looking for a different way to train or get stronger, go watch a session and see if you think it is for you! I love it!

“Kick in the Nuts, III”

10 Rounds
30 second hang
30 second burpees (If the athlete doesn’t get at least 8x, add a round)

10 Rounds
1 minute System Board Crimps
1 minute plank walk up

10 Rounds
1 mintute HIT Strip
Run 200m

Comments:

More brutal work for my climbers. I’m working to get them to the wall/system board/hang, etc., breathing hard.

Here’s what Stephen Koch had to say about “Kick in the Nuts III” –

“Thank you for today’s workout. I liked how it combined heart thumping cardio with hand and forearm training.

“During the latter rounds of the warm up I could hear my heart pumping after the burpees as I was on the hang board, and it was intense to hang on towards the end of the minute during the last two rounds.

“The crimp workout was absolutely perfect duration and intensity for me. I was very near failure at 50 seconds of the 10th round. And the planks were really wicked, especially the first couple rounds until warmed up!

“As you know I pretty much only run at Mountain Athlete due to all of my knee injuries. But I enjoyed the quick burst of a run around the building, into the sunshine and was able to push it throughout the 10 laps. The HIT strip was more mental than anything. I was thinking I needed to get on the system board until you said to just try, which I did. Thanks for that. It worked out well and I found my groove in the third or fourth round of the ten. It was intense jumping immediately from the run (running all the way to the HIT strips) onto the HIT strips. My blood was flowing nicely, to say the least!

“I find getting immediately into the next exercise without thinking about it or waiting for the clock to hit the next 5 or 10 second mark is better training, both physically but especially mentally. At some point I would like to do one of the timed workouts with Curtis P’s, where jumping immediately into the next exercise is very helpful for a lower time. Again…good mental training.

“Well, we finally have mostly clear skies and sunshine today for the first time in a month! So I look forward to a mountain bike ride later today, after the trails dry out.

“Thanks for the great workouts Coach!

- sk

Cheers!

Freddie Heading up Death Canyon at 2:45 p.m.

I know it will be challenging to compete with much lighter and stronger climbers who also have more experience with competition. I am an Alpinist whose favorite type of climbing is what I did last Thursday up Death Canyon, remote, insecure, uncertain and with marginal gear. My partner, Freddie Botour, and I left the parking lot at 2 p.m. with the intention of climbing under the full moon and then with headlamps. Our plan worked well and we had a great adventure climbing Prospector’s Falls and four pitches above, on/in Raven Crack. Hans Johnstone and Greg Collins were up there a few weeks prior to our climb and turned me onto the conditions of the route. We made it up 2 pitches past their high point. I was doing all the leading and was unwilling to pull a final buldge to easier ground. So at midnight I placed a good nut and marginal piton, the only anchor I could get, and came down. I was home and in bed by 3:15 p.m. and made my flight the following day at 1 p.m. to do a slideshow for the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center.

Me training for the Ouray Ice Festival and Competition.

Prospector’s Falls (lower main ice flow) with the thin line of ice coming down Raven Crack.

Full moon rising, just in time!

Freddie in the moonlight with his headlamp on.

Full moon at 2 a.m. What a magical place!

BIRDBRAIN

Obj. Sport specific Strength

Warm up:  1000m Row

Training:

(1) 6 rounds
3 WTD pull ups @ 25#
10 sit ups

(2) 4 rounds
2 WTD pull ups @ 40#
10 push ups

(3) 6 rounds
3 WTD pull ups @ 25#
10 dips
(4) 8 rounds
2x cave lap w/feet
1 sled push (heavy)

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Comments:

While the focus of this workout is developing more pulling power it is also an extreme cardiovascular workout.   The breathing is hard and heavy and there is never enough time to recover.  In addition to this “BIRDBRAIN” causes your technique to improve throughout the time spent in the cave, by the time you have finished the pull up complex your upper body should be toast.  Since these pulling muscles are already worn out when you begin climbing in the cave you really focus on moving efficiently through the steep terrain.  It was interesting to see Stephen go through this workout when he started the cave laps he was still going strong and able to muscle through the first few laps.  However by about round three of the cave he began to tire and for the rest of the session his footwork and technique improved with each round.

With “BIRDBRAIN” Stephen spent about 25 minutes total in the cave climbing.  If you recall the point system I wrote about last week this was a 40 point workout, and in the next five weeks we are progressing up to a 100 point workout.  As we move forward week to week the amount of time spent in the cave climbing is going to increase up to just under a full hour of cave time.

The beauty of this time spent in the cave is that it is giving back a full body workout; pumping out forearms and grip, taxing the core and loading those seldom trained climbing specific leg muscles.  Beautiful.

It was interesting to see Stephen in the video below, because, if you watch his climbing at the end of the cave lap verse the beginning he is moving more consistently and powerfully at the end of the lap than at the start.  In addition Stephen was moving through the cave more quickly at the end of the session than in the beginning.  This leaves me wondering can I get Stephen climbing “smart” from the start?  Or is it necessary to warm the brain up for climbing in order to perform at your highest level?

- Dan Corn

My coach, Rob Shaul of Mountain Athlete (mtnathlete.com), asked me:

are you recovering faster after these efforts (compared to my first 2 hour workout last Thursday)? Were you as hungry this time (as the last) after the session?

To review the workout, check out Rob’s website (mtnathlete.com).

My response follows:

Rob,

Thanks for a great 2 hour workout! I was stoked to participate with all the other fired up athletes!

I am not nearly as tired as I was after the first 2 hour workout last Thursday. So to answer your question, yes, I believe I recovered faster than after last time. In short, I think I was less tired overall but am experiencing much more specific and delayed (24-36 hours post workout) muscle soreness.

My middle back and lat muscles are sore and the front of my shoulders are very sore (from the pushups and other shoulder/chest exercises), but some of that might be from my having one pectoral major and my shoulders doing the bulk of the work. On a number of occasions over the past (nearly) two years of working out with you at MA I have been unusually sore in my shoulders, especially in my right, to sickness in one instance (I believe I poisoned myself with lactic acid buildup and could not workout for nearly 2 weeks and couldn’t even at lift my 22 lb. son over my head for several days. His look told me to not work out in such a way that will jeopardize our fun together in the future. For the most part, I have obliged.

I feel my hamstrings and triceps. My middle back muscles are sore, which is a bit unusual. This might be due to my doing the swings differently. I consciously tried to have a straighter back / better posture during the exercise. Any thoughts on your end about this?

I ate well (more than after last 2 hour session) yesterday and was not overly hungry, as I had been last Thursday. Before the workout I ate a small portion (only reason it was a small portion was because it was left over from day before and I didn’t want to make a new batch at 4:45 a.m.) of 7 grain hot cereal with raisins (1/2 hour pre workout), coffee and a GU energy gel just prior to the workout. During the workout I ate 4 GU energy gels with about 1.5 liters of water. I find it best during a hard workout to down the GU with a wet mouth to let it slide down sans residue in the mouth. When not breathing hard I don’t notice the residue. During heavy breathing I do, hence the prior way of ingesting it. Rocktane (formerly known as Hardrock) tends to leave more of a residue but has more of the goods too, so weigh the pros/cons or simply eat if with a wet mouth prior to eating it and a rinse after and then you don’t have to worry about it. Soon after the workout I had a shake with Egg White Protein Powder/OJ/Water/Flax Seed Oil/L-Glutamine powder, a fried egg on toast and a good size piece of veggie lasagna. For lunch I ate a tuna fish sandwich, bowl of carrot/ginger soup, ½ bag of Garden of Eaten sesame blues chips and ½ an apple. For a snack I ate a thick slice of sharp Tillamook cheddar cheese, an apple and the other ½ bag of chips. For dinner I ate a big spinach salad with walnuts, cranberries, onions and cucumbers and bowl of lentil soup.

I think at this point that one 2 hour workout a week is enough. As I gain strength and stamina then two will probably be good. I look forward to getting on the wall tomorrow to stretch out my lats and work my forearms.

Thanks again!